Date of Award

Winter 3-22-2025

Document Type

Undergraduate Honors Thesis

Degree Name

B.A. in International Studies

Organizational Unit

Josef Korbel School of International Studies

First Advisor

Lewis K. Griffith

Second Advisor

Mayumi Beckelheimer

Copyright Statement / License for Reuse

All Rights Reserved
All Rights Reserved.

Keywords

Russia, Yabloko, People's Freedom Party (PARNAS), Russia of the Future, Opposition, Repression, Non-systemic opposition, Alexei Navalny, Vladimir Putin, Process tracing, 1990-2024

Abstract

What factors illustrate the differences in how the Kremlin under President Vladimir Putin has responded to non-systemic political opposition groups in Russia? While existing literature on opposition theory is expansive, more research concerning contemporary Russian opposition forces is necessary. In particular, it is useful to zoom in on specific opposition parties within Russia, as opposed to the customary method of using countries holistically as cases (Kubát 2010; Helms 2023; Eckstein 1967; Taylor 1988). As such, my research seeks to demonstrate the value of appropriate theoretical frameworks to understand and measure individual opposition parties’ actions rather than the trajectory of Russia’s non-systemic opposition as a whole.

The content of my research is split into two sections. First, there is no academic database or repository of what non-systemic opposition parties exist under the Putin regime, so one must be created to better contextualize this research. Then, the focus can shift toward exploring the variations in the Kremlin’s responses to said parties. This allows for an answer to the question; what factors cause the Putin regime to repress some movements more remarkably than others?

Primary sources in both Western media, Russian media, and opposition media will be compiled for several non-systemic opposition parties in Russia as case studies. Through a qualitative examination of these cases, the realities of what factors have played the largest role in the Kremlin’s reactions toward different non-systemic opposition parties during the Putin regime will be observed.

Copyright Date

1-19-2025

Publication Statement

Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.

Rights Holder

Brock B. Anderson

Provenance

Received from author

File Format

application/pdf

Language

English (eng)

Extent

95 pgs

File Size

900 KB



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